Behind Closed Doors
by Silver Inferno
Summary: Kouga is snared in a trap left by Sesshoumaru. Ironically, Rin, who finds the injured wolf, asks Sesshoumaru to help heal the wounded demon, leading Kouga to witness the shenanigans the human child puts the demon lord through when no one is watching. KoSe
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Oh my god, I had no idea it had been so long since I updated. I have no idea what I am going to do about GTP, though I have Not abandoned it, do not worry. This is something I am writing to get the juices flowing again, so to speak. I probably won't finish it, but consider it a filler until I get GTP going again! Enjoy my new fav couple!**

Oh, this was perfect. This was just GREAT. What a place for him to meet his end, stuck in a godforsaken trap... if he lived through this, he was going to kill the person who set it up, desiccate their corpse, and...and...ugh...he'd think of more threats later.

Koga lay on his stomach in the grass, grumbling to himself, feeling dizzy, nauseated, and tired all at once. Now and then, he'd try and shift his right leg, which caused nothing but pain for him, since said leg was snared in a trap. The teeth were clamped around his calf, and seemed to tighten with every move he made. What made this even worse, was that there seemed to be some kind of seal on the trap, which inflicted the same pain as a demon ward every time he touched it; his hands were already covered in burns. It didn't put his leg in a much better situation either.

The teeth of the trap were dug in almost to the bone, so along with the burns and blood loss, he felt his leg was going to snap off any minute now. Once his leg was gone, his life was pretty much forfeit. He wouldn't be able to fight or hunt as well, if at all. He also refused to kill himself, meaning the rest of his days would be spent surviving on food brought to him, and waiting for someone to come along and off him. Either that or he would bleed to death on his way back home.

A soft laugh left him. "That's what I get for being greedy...Keh... never been one to resist temptation..." Having recently discovered the fresh supply of game to hunt in the far Western Lands, he had ignored all warnings about hunting in the Western Lord's area. For the past few days, he'd been bringing home some fantastic catches to his pack. But of course, all good things must come to an end, and he should have quit while he had the chance, when his comrades had begged him not to push his luck any more.

His thoughts turned to Kagome after a while, and a soft whine left him when it occurred to his tired mind that he was leaving her with the mutt. Pulling on his bangs a few times, he continued to berate himself for many different reasons. This was only interrupted when the scent of a human female filtered into his nose. As it got stronger, he opened his eyes, and blinked a few times as he saw a face framed with long, dark hair was kneeling in front of him. "Ka...gome..." He said quietly with a grin.

The innocent eyes blinked a few times in confusion, and as his sight focused more, he realized this was a child, not Kagome. She tilted her head and reached out a hand to smooth his messed up bangs. He let out the start of a warning growl, but it died away, seeing no reason in threatening her. She was a human child, what harm could she possibly be? She had hesitated at the growl, but when he calmed, once again fixed his hair for him.

Seeing the concern in her eyes quelled his suspicion about her, and allowed him to take in the details about her better. She seemed well dressed, not fancy or anything, but her clothing was clean and in good shape. Her hair wasn't NEAT, but wasn't the tangled style of an orphan, but more like an exploring child's hairstyle. While she was barefoot, she didn't seem to be in any pain, therefore he could only determine that she was indeed well cared for. A slight scent flickering about her caught his interest, and when he recognized it, he froze up. So she was HIS child, huh?

"You better run home to your demon lord, he wouldn't be pleased to find you in my presence." He warned dryly, remembering the attitude the Western Lord carried about him. The child seemed about to speak, but turned around as someone jumped in before she could.

"I'm more concerned as to why YOUR presence is in MY lands." The low voice of the Western Lord rang out. Koga had to hold in a groan as Sesshoumaru stared down at him, disdain obvious in his eyes. Oh yeah, he was going to die, here and now... well, maybe not NOW... he'd heard about Sesshoumaru's human charge, and had a feeling he'd wait until she was gone before he killed him. "I was wondering what kind of fool was hunting in my territory. I suppose you fit the description. You certainly look the part."

"So this little toy was YOUR idea?" Koga demanded, anger boiling up rapidly inside him. It was because of SESSHOUMARU he was doomed to never run again, be it through death or amputation. It was the silver demon's fault that he would never convince Kagome to stay by his side. And it was the Western Lord he wanted dead most of all right now. The only thing that kept him from tearing what was left of his leg off and attacking the stoic demon was the fact that the human child was still knelt beside him, playing with his hair.

"I didn't really expect it to work. Such a simple thing to avoid, after all. I was merely testing how smart the thief in my lands was. Not very, I assume." The two demons stared each other down, one baring his fangs and growling, which didn't seem to faze the child still playing with his hair, the other staring back without a single care in his saffron eyes.

After a long pause, Sesshoumaru turned and started walking away, apparently deciding to leave the wolf to bleed to death. "Come along, Rin." The child looked back at her guardian, then at the wolf, hesitating to leave him alone. Her worry for him touched the wolf enough that he calmed down, and he gestured to Sesshoumaru, who had stopped and turned to watch the two of them.

"Go on, girl. Don't keep him waiting." He used the same voice as when speaking to Kagome, strong and confident, as if assuring her he could get out of this on his own. It took her another moment, but Rin indeed did get up and ran over to Sesshoumaru, who continued on his way. Koga watched the little girl until they disappeared, and then started laughing quietly to himself.

Rin had reminded him of Kagome in so many ways, it wasn't even funny. Unafraid of demons, concerned for others in pain, not to mention she was going to be quite the looker when she grew up, he could already tell. He also noticed the similarities between the two brothers, as much as either one would kill him if he said so. Both of them had taken to a human female, and from what he had heard of Sesshoumaru's human charge, even though she was a daughter to him, whereas Kagome was a lover to InuYasha, both demons placed the girls before anything else.

He allowed his thoughts to entertain himself until after a while, he realized the demon and human's scents were returning. Opening his eyes, he jumped as he saw Rin kneeling in front of him, wincing as this jolted his leg. A bright smile was on Rin's face now, a look he felt suited her much better. "Little girl, I don't think your master will be pleased-"

"Believe me, he's not." Sesshoumaru stated simply, walking past Rin and over to where the trap lay digging into the leg. Koga froze, staring back at the demon lord warily.

"What are you-" His question stopped as a powerful yelp cut through, burying his head into his arms as Sesshoumaru began prying the trap apart. Feeling small hands combing through his hair, he believed he heard the human child speaking to him, but the pain from the teeth dragging out was making his head spin, and he could only focus on the sound, not the words. Surprisingly, listening to the child, and feeling her petting his head, calmed him if just a little.

The way Sesshoumaru was removing the trap, Koga assumed he was trying to inflict the most pain possible, proving he indeed did not want to do this. If this were the case, then why was Sesshoumaru freeing him? Any other attempts to reason this behaviour were lost with one sharp tug of the trap, making a huge wave of pain wash over him, causing the wolf prince to pass out cold.

Eventually the pain free bliss of unconsciousness wore off of the wolf prince. The first thing he became aware of was a steady, throbbing pain, just barely tolerable, in his injured leg. The second thing was that his back rested on rather soft sheets. Managing to force his blue eyes open, his cloudy vision cleared enough to realize he was indoors.

A sudden stab of pain woke him up entirely, and he sat up with a yell, freezing in surprise as he saw the young girl from before was sitting next to him, holding a tray with food on it. Her eyes brightened when she saw he was awake.

"I asked Sesshoumaru-sama what you would want to eat. Is it true that you eat raw meat rolled in dirt?" She asked with a curious look. Koga had to bite back a snarl at that, shaking his head as he looked to the tray. She nodded a bit. "I didn't think so. I did get you meat, but it's not raw, is that okay?" She seemed worried that he wouldn't like the food she had picked out for him, so he offered a smile to her.

"I haven't seen a tastier looking meal in days." He assured, then blinked in surprise as she began cutting it up, and held a piece out to him in a pair of chopsticks. "Um... I can do it myself..."

"No, you need to rest and heal your leg! That trap you got caught in really hurt your leg! That was a mean thing to leave there!" He was intrigued by the way she reacted; it seemed as though she didn't know Sesshoumaru left it there... had she tuned out the entire conversation the two demons had? Seeing she was still holding the meat out, and a rather determined look was now on her face (Which reminded him to no end of Kagome once again), he sighed in defeat and ate the meat off the chopsticks.

He really did prefer raw meat over the cooked, though NOT when it was rolled in dirt, SESSHOUMARU, but seeing as he was starving, and she looked delighted as she handed him another piece, he didn't see the harm in allowing her to feed it to him. As long as he got to feed HIMSELF next time. "What's your name, little girl?" He asked once he swallowed a mouthful.

"Rin is Rin!" She explained happily. He couldn't fight down the smile that rose at her innocent happiness. "What's your name?"

"My name's Koga, the wolf prince." He explained, an air of pride in his voice, which only increased at the awe that showed in her eyes.

"Koga-sama is a prince?" He nodded with a smirk. "Is there a wolf princess?" He laughed slightly at this.

"Not yet. Why, do you want to be a princess?' She shook her head with a smile, holding out some more food.

"No, Rin is happy being with Sesshoumaru-sama." The dedication this small child showed to such a ruthless leader interested the wolf, causing him to ponder over what could create such a bond while he accepted the proffered meat.

The door opened once they were more than halfway through the meal, and Sesshoumaru strode through. He walked over to the food of the bed and stared down at the injured leg, which Koga noted, was wrapped and splinted. Koga wanted to ask how bad the damage was, but he had a feeling speaking to the demon lord was not wise; he could catch glimpses of well controlled anger flickering through the golden eyes now and then.

"Rin, you shouldn't feed him too much just yet. Why don't you take that back to the kitchen?" He suggested. Nodding, the little girl hopped down off the bed, seizing the tray and skipping off. Sesshoumaru's face flickered once again, though he didn't try to hide it as much, the cold look on his face proved he was indeed pissed off.

"Do you have any idea how much it infuriates me to have you in my home?" He hissed. Oh yeah, he was DEFINATELY not feeling guilty over what he had done to the wolf...

"Then why did you take me here in the first place?" He snapped. "I thought it was more your style to kick injured demons, not care for them."

"I was planning on doing a far lot more than kicking you once I got Rin back here. Unfortunately, her being human, she was almost heartbroken at seeing you about to lose your leg, and begged me to heal you. I explained to her that the damage done to your leg would not be healed easily, and it was better to leave you there." His story stopped there, and he looked towards the window, an oddly uncomfortable look on his face. Koga's eyes widened, then he grinned as he realized why.

"She started crying, didn't she? When you told her you wouldn't help me, she started crying, and you couldn't handle it!" He all but crowed. His taunting was cut short as he found Sesshoumaru's claws beneath his chin.

"Would you rather I kill you here and now, and turn you into fodder for the castle gardens?" He hissed. When Koga shook his head as much as he dared, he lowered his hand, heading for the door. "Once you are healed enough to satisfy her, I'm taking you back to the woods and killing you. Whether or not it's a slow death depends on how you behave while here." The door slammed shut, and clicked, proving it was locked.

Koga sighed. So he only got to live for as long as Rin believed him to be injured? A slow grin formed on his face. Then he was going to have to make this a SLOW recovery. What other chance was he going to get to see the Western Lord interacting with his human charge, out of sight of prying eyes?


	2. Chapter 2

"Koga-sama, I'm so sorry for denying you for so long." Kagome swooned, burying her face into the wolf demon's shoulder. The blue eyed wolf wrapped his arms around her, holding the woman firmly to his chest.

"Don't worry about it, Kagome. I knew you'd do the right thing in the end." Her face lifted to lock eyes with his, her brown eyes warm and loving.

"Koga-sama..."

Her arms wrapped around his neck...

"Koga-sama..."

Her face drew closer...

"KOGA-SAMA!" The wolf's entire body convulsed as his eyes opened, blinking a few times as it registered that he was dreaming. Fighting back the urge to howl his frustration, he sat up in bed to see Rin sitting next to him on the blankets, and an ugly green toad standing next to the bed. The child's eyes lit up as the wolf woke.

"See? Rin told you, Jaken-sama! Sesshoumaru-sama DID save him yesterday!" The toad looked rather indignant at this, crossing his arms over a staff that was as ugly as him

"What could Sesshoumaru-sama possibly be thinking, taking in such a savage, low-classed-WHAA!" Jaken's rant was interrupted by the wolf seizing hold of the corner of his mouth, lifting him off the floor by it, Koga's eye twitching rapidly.

"Low-classed, huh? You don't look very high-ranking yourself." Rin just laughed, bouncing on the bed on all fours.

"Jaken is just upset because Sesshoumaru-sama left without him yesterday." She explained, earning some odd noises from the toad, which probably would have been scoldings if Koga wasn't still holding him up in the air by the corner of his mouth.

Feeling his stomach rumble, Koga dropped the smaller demon, placing his other hand on his waist with a sigh. "Did I miss breakfast?" Rin nodded while Jaken grumbled, rubbing the side of his face.

"Rin wanted to come and get you up, but Sesshoumaru-sama said to it was best to let sleeping dogs lie." She looked confused at this. "Rin thought you were a wolf." Biting back a snarl, he pushed his unbound hair back out of his face.

"I am." He assured, shifting his sore leg to test how bad the pain was, and figuring he wasn't getting out of bed just yet from the throb felt. "Hey, toad. Go get some food for me and Rin." He told Jaken, who's indignation rose at the order.

"And what makes you think I'll take orders from a mangy wolf?!" Koga leaned down to press his face against the toad's.

"The fact that YOU'LL be my breakfast if you don't tempt me with something else." Sputtering repeatedly, the small demon left in a hurry, grumbling about rude, under-classed beasts.

"Rin doesn't think you should eat Jaken-sama." She warned seriously. "Sesshoumaru-sama said he sleeps in the sewers and drinks the runoff. He wouldn't taste very good." The wolf prince's upper lip twitched slightly, then he burst out laughing, which confused Rin to no end.

Later, after Koga had forced down whatever excuse for a meal the horrid toad had dug up for him, he found himself growing restless, and decided to attempt a small walk about the grounds. Rin stayed by his side the entire time, ready to dart forward and help the unsteady wolf every time he swayed, though the only help she offered was increasing his determination to stay up, since he feared crushing her if she tried to support him.

The wolf just made it to the massive garden that surrounded most of the elaborate building before he had to sit down, the pain in his leg having grown too much to mask. Settling down on a rather comfortable bench, he watched Rin wander about the garden, entertaining herself for the most part, though darting back now and then to check on him, asking if he wished to go back inside.

Every time she asked, he assured her that he was fine, and every time, he could feel the cold gaze of a certain warlord on him. The wolf was actually surprised that Sesshoumaru was allowing him to wander so freely, though he had a strong feeling Rin was the main reason for this.

He was brought out of his thoughts as Rin came running up to him, several flowers in her hair, and a few in her hands. A large smile was on her face as she offered them to him. "Well, don't you look lovely..." He remarked as he took the flowers from her with a smile, looking over the blossoms in her hair, and noticing that several of them weren't native to this area. "Is this your garden, or did Sesshoumaru make it?" She shook her head to both as she plopped down beside him.

"Sesshoumaru-sama's mother made this garden." She answered, looking up at the wolf in surprise as he coughed a few times at this.

"His MOTHER?" She nodded up at him.

"Yep. Rin's met her once, and she asked Rin if her garden was still growing. Rin told her that it was, and that Rin loved playing in it. She seemed happy about that." Getting up once more, she resumed her exploration, leaving the wolf to digest these thoughts. It was logical that the warlord's mother was still alive, considering how long demons usually lived for. Everyone already knew Sesshoumaru's father's fate, but his mother was almost nonexistent when it came to the rumors flying around; barely anyone knew anything about her.

The idea of the woman who gave birth to a demon like Sesshoumaru tending her own garden amused the wolf to no end. One would think a garden grown by such a warlord's parent would be full of poisonous and carnivorous plants, rather than the colorful blossoms that surrounded him. Twirling one of the flowers Rin gave him in his hand, his smile grew wider as he logged away another interesting fact about the enigmatic demon.

"Are you spying on orders, or are you just too damn nosy for your own good?" Koga called out while looking over the flowers, earning a sputtering noise from some bushes a few feet away from him. The tiny toad demon sidled out slowly, glaring suspiciously at the wolf.

"I-I am making sure Sesshoumaru-sama's charge does not get eaten!" He snapped. "The last thing Sesshoumaru-sama needs is to have his hospitality repaid by Rin getting mauled by a wolf AGAIN!" Koga paused at that, and turned to glare at the demon.

"What do you mean, AGAIN?!" He snapped, but all he got was a terrified squeak, and Jaken took off, apparently deciding his own safety was at more risk than Rin was.

The small vassal's statement left an unsettled feeling in the wolf's stomach, and he watched Rin for a while, trying to tell whether or not Jaken's jab at him was indeed true.

The rest of the day was uneventful, the wolf having to part with Rin in the late afternoon when Sesshoumaru showed himself at last, though only for a second, long enough to tell Rin to come with him, and to give Koga a look cold enough to give his tail frostbite. The demon prince was left to wander painfully back to his room, collapsing onto his bed with a sigh.

Supper was never sent his way, which didn't surprise him in the slightest, seeing as he'd terrified Jaken, and Sesshoumaru seemed determined to keep Rin from him for the rest of the night. He'd heard the child coming towards him, and every time she almost reached the door, she was herded off by some unknown voices, most likely the servants of the castle, telling her Sesshoumaru wanted her for something.

An hour or so after the sun had gone down, and the wolf was seriously considering limping to the kitchen to calm his growling stomach, his door opened. When neither Rin nor Jaken's scent hit him, but rather Sesshoumaru's did, he sat up fully, his face schooled into indifference. The look dropped without warning when he saw Sesshoumaru was carrying a tray of food.

At seeing the stunned look on the demon's face, a quiet noise left the silver lord as he turned to shut the door. "What's the point in trying to heal your leg if we let you starve?" He pointed out blandly, placing the tray next to Koga on the bed, obviously not going to hand feed him like Rin always insisted on doing.

"What took you so long?" Koga demanded, causing Sesshoumaru's face to sharpen.

"I have more important matters in this castle besides you, WOLF." He hissed out softly, but Koga just scoffed at this.

"So get a servant to bring it to me. It sounds like you've got enough of them." The silver demon's hand slammed down on Koga's wrist as he had reached for the chopsticks, squeezing it painfully and threatening to shatter more than a few bones.

"And risk having to replace ANOTHER victim of a wolf attack? I think not." Dropping his wrist as quickly as he had seized it, Sesshoumaru headed over to the foot of the bed, looking over his leg for a moment.

"Again with that?!" Koga demanded, glaring at Sesshoumaru as he started to unravel the dirty bandages. "Your ugly toad vassal said almost the same thing! What the hell do you mean by ANOTHER?" He received no reply, Sesshoumaru busying himself with unrolling the wolf's injured leg from the bandages. Grumbling for a moment, the demon prince gave up and appeased his growling stomach by digging into the meal.

Koga almost killed himself by choking on some of the meat he was eating when his bandage was pulled off a bit too roughly with no warning. Glaring at the warlord through watery eyes, he growled when he saw a flicker of an amused smile. The glare was replaced with a wince as Sesshoumaru rubbed a salve of some sort into the wound. Neither said anything to the other while the bandages were changed, Koga focusing all of his attention on his meal.

"If I see you get any closer to Rin than you are at this very moment, if you touch her in ANY way I deem as even the slightest bit inappropriate, I will take your head off where you stand." Was his farewell, the Western Lord's hair lifting slightly from the speed he strode out of the room with.

Koga sighed, staring down at his plate. Everyone with the exception of Rin seemed to treat him like the plague. Just what had happened in the past for the inhabitants of the castle to have to much distrust in wolves?


	3. Chapter 3

Koga sat in a chair in his room, his leg propped up on an ottoman, staring out of a window. He was bored out of his mind. The toad had brought his breakfast in for him, leaving with a short sputtering of how the wolf had better appreciate all of this. Koga had chased him off with a short growl. Rin had yet to visit him; He assumed Sesshoumaru had something to do with that.

It actually depressed him that the child hadn't come to see him. He had grown used to her company in the short time he'd been around her, having reminded him greatly of Kagome. To make things worse, he was bored out of his mind. He had tried to leave his room earlier, but Jaken had forced him back in, threatening to tell Sesshoumaru he was causing trouble. Knowing the demon lord was looking for any excuse to off him, the wolf prince had retreated.

Therefore, when his door opened and Rin came running in, his heart actually lifted for the first time since he had arrived, offering her a smile. "Where have you been all day?"

"With Sesshoumaru-sama. But he's left for a while, so Rin came to keep you company. Are you busy?" He shook his head, and her eyes lit up, grabbing his hand. "Then come with Rin!"

Taking care not to rush his leg, the human child guided him down many halls, ignoring Jaken's insistence that Koga stay where he was. Only now was he getting glimpses of the servants that worked her, many of them low class demons that resembled humans, with the exception of a few features. His eyes trailed over a few of the women, earning cautious but interested looks in return, which placed a grin on his face.

"Rin, where are we going?"

"To Rin's room!" He slowed to a stop at that, remembering Sesshoumaru's warning; he doubted very much the demon lord would want him in his surrogate daughter's room by himself. She looked up at him in confusion as he stopped. "You do not want to go to Rin's room?" He offered a smile to her.

"I don't think Sesshoumaru would like that." She looked confused at that, then turned as one of the servants called her name. The female demon approached the two carefully, her eyes always lifting back to Koga.

"Rin-san, why don't you let Koga-san rest? He shouldn't be moving around so much."

"But Rin wants to play with Koga-sama!" The servant looked rather unsettled that the child was giving Koga such an honorific title.

"Then perhaps you should take him to your painting room instead. It's closer." Realizing that the servant wasn't trying to take her away, but merely prevent Sesshoumaru from blowing up half the castle in fury, he looked down at Rin.

"Rin-chan, you can paint?" She looked delighted at the nickname he gave her, and quickly changed direction, nodding. He offered the servant a grateful smile before they disappeared through a door into a rather sunny room.

"Sesshoumaru-sama gave this room to Rin when he found her drawing with the wild berries she found!" She explained, running across the large room. Countless canvases were scattered everywhere, half of them covered in childish paintings, many of them depicting a silver colored figure with an smaller orange one, and an even smaller green one.

Marvelling at the fact that Sesshoumaru would go this far to indulge in the child's wishes, he held back the laughter that wanted out at the crude paintings of Sesshoumaru. It wasn't so much that she COULD paint, but rather that she LIKED to paint.

"Rin has been making this one." she called out to him, running up with a canvas half as big as her. It didn't take him long to figure out who the brown character sitting on a bench next to the orange one was. Taking it gently from her, he looked over the splotchy bushes, oversized trees and other strange looking objects he assumed were part of the garden.

Looking back at her proud grin, he ruffled her hair up a bit, grinning back at her. "Great job, Rin." He praised, smiling at the infantile depiction of himself, noticing that he was holding Rin's hand in the painting, and smiling far wider than anatomically possible.

"Will you paint Rin?" Blinking in surprise at this, he looked back at her.

"I...I'm not very good at painting." He informed, and he bit back a laugh as she puffed her cheeks out.

"Have you tried?" He shook his head, setting the painting down carefully as she pulled him along once more and gently forcing him to sit. Fumbling with the paintbrush she gave him, she sat across from him with her own paintbrush after giving him a medium sized canvas, and proceeded to start her own painting.

Figuring he may as well try, since he didn't have anything better to do, he searched through the colors of different inks for a proper shade of orange.

About an hour or so later, the two of them compared paintings. Rin had once again painted him, this time a portrait, and he once more bit down on his tongue to keep from laughing. "It looks just like me." Rin herself clapped repeatedly after setting it down, then insisted that he show her his.

It wasn't a stunning picture, but it was a decided improvement over a ten year old's, and his reward for his half decent picture of her was a full body hug that rocked him backwards slightly.

"See, Koga-sama!? You CAN paint!" Smiling, he hugged her back, handing the painting to her and watching as she ran to set it on a shelf. Looking at the other paintings on the shelf, he blinked, then struggled to his feet, limping over to get a better look. There were many paintings of Rin on the shelf already, all of them obviously by the same artist, and all were lifelike enough to be her twin.

"Rin-chan, who did these?"

"Sesshoumaru-sama painted those!" she explained, pointing to a small symbol in the corner of a fang, which must have been Sesshoumaru's version of a signature. "He paints with Rin a lot!" Picking up a painting of Rin holding a flower out, he smiled at her.

"Is it hard to stay still for that long?" She looked confused for a moment, then shook her head.

"Rin doesn't pose for Sesshoumaru-sama. He says it's easier if he paints out of his head." She explained, placing his painting on the middle shelf. Having Koga's mediocre attempt next to Sesshoumaru's caused the wolf's chest to warm a bit, pleased that she felt it deserved to be up there. Hearing his stomach growl, he looked down at her as she laughed.

"Lunch time, then?" He asked, to which she nodded.

After the skies had dimmed, and Koga had steered the half asleep Rin into a servant's arms, the wolf found himself settling into a well deserved bath one of the handmaidens had drawn for him, the gesture far too much appreciated to be taken as a sign that he was starting to smell. Enough fragrance was in the water to wash away any foul smell; of course, he wasn't too pleased with that, since it was screwing up his own sense of smell. The hot water greatly made up for it as it soothed away any aches and pains he had been dealing with in order to keep up with the hyper child.

Of course, the moment his injured leg hit the hot water, the marginal pain was replaced with severe burning pain, but he didn't care. The leg needed cleaning anyway, and he refused to give Sesshoumaru anything else to jab at him about.

As his thoughts flitted to the silver warlord, he mused over what he had learned from the past few days. There were far more sides to Sesshoumaru than anyone could have considered. The fact that the cold demon actually took the time to sit with a human child and paint with her was what had stunned him the most so far, him having met much kinder demons who would NEVER have done that.

Hearing the door open, he smiled as he decided it was time to act on the intrigued looks the servants were continually giving him. "I can't get over how big this bath is. I'm actually starting to feel kind of lonely in here. Do you mind keeping me company?" When he got no reply, he frowned slightly, but it turned back to a smirk as the sound of fabric dropping to the floor was heard. "Is that a yes?"

"Only if you keep at least 5 feet away from me at all times." The voice had Koga almost jumping out of his skin, as well as sliding almost all the way into the water, only his head visible as he glared up at Sesshoumaru, who was in the middle of removing the rest of his clothing, his upper half bare already. "Otherwise I'm going to kick you out of my bath. The only reason I'm letting you stay in there is because you do indeed need it."

Ignoring the growl he got as an answer, Sesshoumaru stepped into the hot water a good distance from the wolf, the water coming to mid waist on him. Koga leaned back against the side once more, still not able to support himself on his leg. "If it bothers you so much to share a bath with me, why not wait til morning?"

"Because I have had a trying enough day as it is, and I am not to wait any longer to get this scent off of me." He snapped, surprising Koga a bit, since the demon lord usually had a good rein on his temper. Wisely staying quiet, he resumed his soaking, combing out his hair now and then and doing his best to ignore the other demon. Only when Inuyasha's scent worked it's way over the scented water did he dare to look at Sesshoumaru.

He was relieved to see that not only was there no blood on the other's scent, but that Kagome's was missing as well. The human woman was quickly forgotten as he got a look at Sesshoumaru's left arm, or rather, his lack of a left arm.

"What..." The question died as soon as it started, the wolf changing his mind to ask very quickly, though he bravely met Sesshoumaru's stony gaze, his blue eyes trailing to what remained of his arm for a moment.

"It's rude to stare." Sesshoumaru remarked simply, causing Koga to break the contest first, the wolf looking down at the small bubbles floating by his arm. After a while, Koga hoisted himself backwards out of the water, sitting on the edge in order to continue soaking his leg, while beginning to dry off his upper half with a towel. Once he was entirely dry, other than his legs, he leant back on his elbows, his eyes closing with a sigh. His contentment only lasted a few moments, the silence between the two of them unnerving. He was far too used to his pack, where everyone chatted about every little thing. There was never silence; even while sleeping, there was loud snoring.

"What were you picking on the mutt for?" He threw out randomly, looking over at the demon lord. Sesshoumaru kept his back to the wolf, busying himself with cleaning his hair. Well that topic wouldn't get very far... "Rin showed me your paintings of her. Never took you for the artistic type. Of course I guess since you're NOBLE and all, you were taught all that artsy, fancy stuff as a child, huh?"

Sesshoumaru's shoulders stiffened slightly at the mention of the paintings, and Koga instantly regretted letting his sarcastic mouth run again. He tensed himself, ready to dodge any attack as well as he could. To his surprise, Sesshoumaru didn't attack; rather, he walked over, slowly and calmly, a deadpan look on his face that scared the wolf more than one of fury would have.

Once he was in front of the wolf, his hand snaked out to seize his throat and yank him forward into the water, ignoring the yelp of pain that came from the other man as his injured leg was jarred.

"First of all, Shut. Up. You rattle on more than that irritating, whey-faced human that tags along with my brother." Koga's ire rose at that, but he found himself lacking the air needed to snap as Sesshoumaru's grip tightened. "Second, I never recalled giving you permission to strike up conversation with me, LET ALONE discuss what goes on between me and my charge. I've tired of your presence. Dry off and go back to your room, before I decide Rin's tears will be more bearable than you."

Koga's eyes narrowed, and he seized Sesshoumaru's wrist with both hands, managing, to his surprise, to pry the grip away from him. "You know what? I'm getting REAL sick of your stuffy arrogance. I can only care so much that you're the Western Lord. In case you forgot, I'm kind of the alpha male of my pack. It may not give me as MUCH rank as you, but I'm no low classed demon that can be bossed around! I'm trying as hard as I can not to step on your toes or push the limits while staying here, but I'm about ready to start biting back if you don't show me at least a LITTLE of the respect I deserve!"

The adrenaline that had rushed through him at the rant died very quickly as he noticed that Sesshoumaru's eyes had flooded red...

((Nyah! lol yes I'm leaving you here!! Review a lot, and I'll get the next chapter up sooner! X3 ))


	4. Chapter 4

The lump that had risen in the wolf's throat was proving very hard to force back down. He wanted to clear his throat, but he was scared such a noise would piss the Western Lord off even more.

The wolf tried to move back a bit, to gain some more personal space, but he bumped into the side of the tub with a yelp. The yelp was cut off as Sesshoumaru's hand snapped forward, closing almost gently around Koga's throat, the claws resting lightly against his tanned neck.

Sesshoumaru didn't say anything; he merely stared at the wolf, his saffron eyes unfeeling. The hiss of poison sounded, and Koga winced as his neck began to burn, but he kept still, not resisting in the slightest. Growing up in a pack, he knew full well when one male bowed down to the other in contests, if they wanted to live, anyway.

After a while, Sesshoumaru let go, Koga's, if temporary, obedience satisfying the rage that had built up inside him.

"The better you behave while here, the less painful your death will be once you are healed." He reminded, turning to exit the bath, grabbing the towel the servant had left for Koga, drying off and leaving. Only once the warlord's scent faded did Koga let his legs buckle, catching himself on the edge before he slid under all the way.

"That was NOT what I would call a relaxing bath..." He muttered, rubbing at his face for a moment before hauling himself out as well.

The next morning found Koga standing outside, just at the door, with Rin, staring at a long stretch of mud that covered the entire yard. This did not bode well for the wolf; he could tell already.

Rin had begged Sesshoumaru to let her go outside, but the silver demon had denied her permission, explaining that this was the only clean outfit she had left, and until the others were finished, she was going to have to 'refrain from romping through the mud like a wild animal', as he had put it.

At the saddened look on the child's face, Koga had been unable to resist. Once he was sure Sesshoumaru was occupied, he had let the excited child outside, who, while hesitant to disobey her lord, wanted to dearly to go explore the garden for shiny stones to add to the bowl of fish she had gathered from a stream.

Unfortunately, within a few minutes of being on the damp grass, Rin had darted forward, slipped, and landed backside first into the mud. Both of them had just stared at her outfit for a few seconds, knowing that the Western Lord wouldn't take this well at all.

Sighing gently, Koga walked over, holding out a hand to help her up. "Maybe we can get it cleaned off before he-" Rin had pulled on his hand to lift herself from the mud, but slipped again, and the fact that Koga stood on the treacherous mud as well meant that he was going down with her. Lifting his hand out of the muck, he stared for a moment, then burst out laughing.

Rin joined in after a moment, and when the wolf managed to calm himself down, she took the opportunity to hurl a ball of mud at him as hard as she could, smacking him straight in the face. Cleaning off his eyes, he took one look at the innocent eyes she was giving him, and then an all out mud war started.

It carried on for at least ten minutes, Jaken becoming a casualty when he ran over to scold them, and got a mouthful, courtesy of Koga. Said wolf ducked under a missile launched by the child, and instantly wished he hadn't.

For the same second he ducked, he caught the presence of an all too familiar demon, and turned just in time to see the dark ooze splatter all over Sesshoumaru's pants. All three of them watched the mud drip off of the pristine white fabric, Rin looking like she was going to cry from guilt. Knowing this was all his fault in the first place, Koga acted fast.

He gathered up as much mud as he could hold in his hands, and whipped it hard at Sesshoumaru, which slapped him in the side of the head, since he was too preoccupied with his pants. The golden gaze lifted to regard the wolf, who was standing before Sesshoumaru, cocky grin in place, tossing mud from hand to hand.

"Aw, is the doggy scared of some dirt?" He taunted, whipping the mud once more at Sesshoumaru. This attack was easily dodged, but revealed to be just a distraction, as Koga kicked in the whirlwinds around his feet, coating the silver demon from head to toe in the muck.

Rin covered her mouth as she gasped, staring wide eyed at the mess Sesshoumaru was left as. The eyes glared at the wolf, though they carried no want for blood, which relieved Koga to no end. Quick as could be, Sesshoumaru's fur whipped out, curling around the wolf's entire body, cushioning his leg the most, then the demon proceeded to spin about, dragging Koga face first through the mud.

Once he had turned 5 full times, he dropped the wolf prince into the mud, watching as he hacked up dirt, ooze and other things best left unmentioned. Looking up at Sesshoumaru, Koga wisely held his hands up, a weak grin in place. "You win."

Without a word, Sesshoumaru turned and headed back for the building, the other two catching on and following close behind, Jaken left somewhere in the mess.

Letting out a delighted sigh once he was clean and his bandage changed, Koga stepped into his room to find a new outfit laid out for him. It was a rather fancy looking kimono, nothing compared to Sesshoumaru's, but still fancier than he usually wore. It was a rather dark shade of blue, with tasteful shades of black and brown.

Confused as to why they gave it to him when he explained after first arriving that he preferred his own, he looked up as a servant came in.

"Miss Rin has requested that you accompany her and Lord Sesshoumaru to the festival being held in the youkai village." She explained. "It requires more formal dress codes. Will you need help?" Fighting back a blush, he assured her he could do it himself, gathering up the fabric.

It was only after 20 minutes of fighting with the heavy clothing that he agreed to let her dress him.

Stepping out of the room once dressed, he nearly bumped into Rin, who was clad in an adorable orange and yellow kimono, similar to her normal clothes, but more formal. She smiled brightly and seized his hand, pulling him along, being mindful of his leg, which he could now walk on, though only slowly, and with an obvious limp, chattering about how much she was looking forward to the festival.

Sesshoumaru joined in at the doors, looking apathetic about the fact that Koga was tagging along, though the wolf knew he did NOT want Koga with them. His own kimono was rather impressive, dressed in black rather than white, with red and blue highlights still along the collar and sleeves. His hair was also tied back, giving him a far more regal look, one the wolf found didn't suit him as much as usual. He said nothing however, tightening his own hair tie.

Once at the festival, Koga was unable to keep up with Rin, so he let go of her hand, Sesshoumaru and he walking behind her as she darted ahead, running back now and then to check on them or ask a question. Once or twice, she would ask one of them for an item she saw at a booth.

Within ten minutes, she had 4 more fish to add to her bowl, two balloons and a meat bun. She ended up giving the fish to Koga, and the balloon to Sesshoumaru, so she wouldn't drop them as she ran about, feasting on the food in her hands.

Koga couldn't help but notice the stares they were getting from the other youkai. He was just thankful this wasn't a human's festival. If Sesshoumaru got this many stares from demons, he couldn't imagine the attention they would get with the humans, especially since Sesshoumaru would most likely be killing them.

Glancing up at the silver demon, he noted that Sesshoumaru looked much more masculine with his hair pulled back, and once more disapproved of it, preferring the more feminine look he had with his hair down. Of course, that was only because it was easier to imagine the demon lord actually WAS female.

Shaking his head before that train of thought continued, he looked down to see Rin holding a sweet bean roll out to him. Smiling, he shook his head, thanking her, but assuring he was fine.

She darted off once more, letting out a small noise as she bumped into a youkai boy. Before she had time to apologize, he started yelling at her, snatching the roll she'd intended for Koga.

The wolf started forward, intending to defend the child, but the black form beside him beat the wolf to it. Within a second, Sesshoumaru was standing next to Rin, holding the youkai child off the ground by his ear, the child too frightened to yell.

"Oh... is that my Rin's roll you have found there?" He asked, to which the child nodded rapidly. "Were you planning on returning it, or eating it?" Rather than say anything, he held it out to her, tears forming in his eyes. Rin took it gratefully, then when Sesshoumaru set the child down, broke it in half and offered the kid part of it, which he cautiously took.

Koga shook his head, grinning as he caught up to the two of them, watching Rin and the child discussing the bean roll. He was DEFINATELY glad this wasn't a human village... 


End file.
